Victor Chandler scales down racecourse betting

Victor Chandler have this week scaled back there onsite racecourse betting as part of a major restructure of their racecourse betting. The money is according to Victor Chandler no longer there as punters are saving on travel costs and use the traditional companies’ online equivalent and betting exchanges such as Betfair instead.

On track bookies are now having to rely more on the high days such as the Grand National and other festivals as well as holidays to ensure their survival, one on track bookie commented “I’d like to think things have reached rock bottom, but I don’t think they have. With the economic situation, it’s going to be a rough 12 to 18 months. In another five years, I’d think there might be no more than 50% of the bookmakers who were here three years ago.“

Horse racing under scrutiny from BBC Panorama

The world of horse racing is preparing to be placed under the microscope for the second time by the BBC1 programme Panorama.  The show is due to air tonight in a one special titled ‘Racing’s dirty secret’.  The shows contents have been a closely guarded secret but are not felt to be as hard hitting as Panorama’s first investigation into horse racing in October 2002.

The October 2002 programme led to resignation of the head of security for the Jockey Club Jeremy Phipps after undercover footage of him lambasting his employers was broadcast.  The focus of tonight’s show is thought to have more emphasis on the issues of the laying of horses through betting exchanges as well as the misuse of insider information

The spokesperson for the British Horse Society, Paul Struthers said “We acknowledge that racing, as any sport where betting is involved, attracts people on its fringes who will try to cheat the odds by obtaining inside information and within the sport there are some people who are susceptible to these corrupting influences because they are greedy or naïve“, he went on to add “We have emphasised to Panorama the need to maintain a sense of proportion, there are well over 20,000 owners, trainers, jockeys and stable staff involved in racing, over 10,000 races and millions of race goers and punters who enjoy the sport. Overall racing is not corrupt and its reputation should not be allowed to be tainted by the actions of a small minority.”

The show is likely to feature evidence from the prosecution of last years collapsed high profile
trial of the jockey Kieren Fallon. It is also understood that the BHA are in uproar that they have yet been given permission to access the information by the Crown Prosecution Service.